Panda dairy execs' sentences upheld

SHANGHAI - A local court on Friday rejected pleas for leniency from two of the three former executives of Shanghai Panda Dairy Co Ltd who were convicted of producing and selling melamine-tainted dairy products.

The Shanghai No 1 Intermediate People's Court upheld the original sentence handed down to Wang Yuechao, former corporate representative and deputy general manager of the company, and Hong Qide, former general manager, last month.

The Shanghai Fengxian District Court had found Wang, Hong and Chen Dehua, former deputy general manager of the dairy manufacturer, guilty of producing and selling toxic food, a charge that has a maximum penalty of death, following a trial in March.